Skating treadmill manufacturers take note. The Slidewinder prototype proves that a bio-mechanically correct off-ice replication of skating does not require a huge piece of expensive motorized machinery. So, it is inevitable that. some time in the future, compact, non-motorized skating exercise machines will be widely available. They will be a fraction of the cost of skating treadmills. When that occurs, skating treadmills could quickly become historical relics, as obsolete as Stanley Steamers.

In an early experiment, to test the theory that flywheel (inertial) resistance closely replicates the resistance felt during actual skating, I set up two flywheel-type rowing machines side by side and extended cords back from the pullchains of each and tied the cord ends around my ankles. In heavy socks on a slippery floor, with an assistant hanging onto the back of my belt, I tried to “skate”. It felt great. It felt like skating – for 5 or 6 strides. Then everything fell apart. (continue)

(continue) As soon as the flywheel was up to speed, my legs splayed out uncontrollably. All feeling of having an edge, of digging in and pushing off, as in actual skating, vanished. After a dozen strides it was impossible to maintain balance and co-ordination …but it had felt so right at the beginning. By what mechanism could that “digging in” sensation felt during those first few strides be prolonged and retained regardless of the speed of the flywheel? It was the key problem to be solved.

The Slideboard, the PowerSkater, the CardioWave… these and others are all failed attempts to replicate the skating action in an exercise machine. None enable any variability of stride geometry, nor do they provide the feeling of momentum build up as in actual skating. Engineers, unable to design a simple compact skating machine, resorted to a brute force solution. The result is $100,000 plastic-belted motorized skating treadmills as big as garages. The “Slidewinder” shows another way.

For viewers wondering about the intensity of the workout: I’m no great athlete. In the video demonstration the resistance is at its lowest setting. I also rested between takes. Recently, two Junior “A” players tried the Slidewinder machine. I cranked the resistance up. Those young tough guys were totally whipped in less than five minutes.

Explanatory comments under the first video, “Canada’s Secret Weapon”, also apply to this video. It’s the same machine, but pushed to the next level with a larger skating surface; an increased range of lateral movement; and lower, more stable foot platens. Thankyou to the Toronto hockey pros for their time, enthusiasm, and advice.